This blog is dedicated to the life and times of an extraordinary dog named Guinness.

All of you who knew Guinness know that I've always told him he has Puppy Powers. Despite losing his right hind leg to bone cancer (osteosarcoma) early this year, Guinness continued to be his same good-natured, food-loving, gentle, yet silly self right to the end. It was during this time his Puppy Powers turned into Pirate Puppy Powers!

Monday, October 5, 2009

My Pirate Pup - Guinness' Records

I wanted to make this post because leaving this blog hanging on the previous one makes me really sad. I wanted to be able to think past it, and reflect a little bit on what made Guinness so...Guinness.

His name, which chosen for, obviously, the stout of the same name, ended up being appropriate for another reason. He, in my opinion lived up to the name Guinness in the sense of records . . . I called them Guinness' Records. First and foremost, besides being a very large and powerful animal, Guinness had to have been one of the most gentle, if not the gentlest dogs I have ever met, and I am almost certain anyone who has met him will agree. In his 10 years he was witnessed to have growled only one time, and it wasn't even a growl but a little grunt of protest when a then 2 year old (my nephew) tried to sit on his back years ago. Kincaid loved Guinness so much I think he wanted to engulf him.

But he was also nuts! It was the mix of his sweet nature added to a completely bonkers personality (which is what drove to me to call him a Puppy, and never a dog to the very last) that made him who he was.

In my opinion, he won other "Guinness' Records" for: the most times causing an owner to have to call the vets for eating strange items, food or otherwise; amount of creative tricks learned in a short amount of time (I had to stop because I ran out of ideas eventually); the amount of surgeries he had to go through due to aliments and/or self inflicted injury; for his resilience and his ability to deal with various health issues with such acceptance; and above all else, his capacity for absolute love of every single human or animal that he met (including other dogs he occasionally encountered that clearly wanted to eat him for lunch).

At the moment I'm trying to draw on and learn from his record ability to accept situations with grace, strength and determination. It is this that is making me able to deal with his loss a little easier so that I can move forward and focus on all the love and enjoyment that came from having him be part of our lives.

That's all for right now, but I think tomorrow I'd like to start posting up some of the really silly things Guinness has done over the years, there are so many stories, I would love to use this place to put it down in words so it's not forgotten. Perhaps I'll touch on each of the Guinness' Records in a series of posts.

And, I'll leave this on a silly note with an early photo of him, taken a few days after he came home with me, wrestling with a visiting puppy friend. If you take a look at his expression, you'll get a tiny glimpse of the whirling dervish he was!

From Pup to Pirate Pup

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How Guinness came to have Pirate Puppy Powers

In early May Guinness was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, bone cancer, in his right leg. The prognosis was very poor, and in order to aleviate pain, and in attempt to extend an extremely shortened life expectancy, we made the decision to have his leg amputated. This would do two things. First, it would rid him of the pain associated with the cancer, and second, it would keep the cancer from growing within the bone, which would ultimately enter his lungs very rapidly.

On May 11, 2009 Guinness underwent surgery at The Animal Clinic of Chardon with Dr. Tom, our good friend and extremely adept surgeon. He was under the care of both Tom and Dr. Wendy, Tom's wife, also an amazing veterinarian, and my very dear friend, as well as the wonderful staff at ACOC. I owe both of them so much for their care and support of Guinness, I can't even begin to express it.

On May 15, Guinness celebrated his 10th birthday, and was already up and about, moving around on three legs. He is now what I like to call, our Pirate Pup, and now has Pirate Puppy Powers!

On May 19, Guinness was accepted into a study of the effects of a combination of chemotherapy drugs at Ohio State University's School of Veterinary Medicine. There he will be administered 4 doses of chemo three weeks apart. http://www.vet.ohio-state.edu/1452.htm

It is my hope, and based on succeses of other patients that have gone through the study, that the chemotherapy will greatly increase his life expectancy and life quality. Guinness is currently recovering from surgery and doing well, and his first scheduled dose will be administered on May 26th.